Love REALLY Hurts
by Darien Fawkes
Summary: The title says it all for Kevin.


**Legal:** I do not own Power Rangers or the associated names, characters, places, events etc. Everything not covered by the above rights is to be presumed to be purely the creation of the author.

**Rating: **T – may be some mild adult themes.

Kevin was sitting in the living room of the Academy, waiting on Mia returning with the first aid kit. He was used to getting a few bumps and bruises in training, as Mentor Ji would tell them constantly, even the best of warriors made mistakes, and even the strongest guard was not infallible. One of the reasons behind the philosophy of using Martial Arts only for defence, and using violence only as a last resort was because regardless of whether or not a person won the fight, they would get hurt. It was an inevitability which meant that it was always best to first of all exhaust all other options before resorting to violence.

This time was different though. While he was used to taking the odd shot from a training sword, even when up against Mike, generally it was only slightly annoying. The wooden swords, or Bokken, were made of solid wood and when swung with even minimal force, would bruise painfully, and had even been known to fracture bone if the victim was unlucky.

The bamboo swords, or Shinai, they occasionally used were worse. They were designed really to be used by practitioners wearing kendo armour. Due to being made of bamboo they were more flexible than the Bokken, which when combined with armour would mean that the impact would cause minimal injury.

The Rangers never wore armour in training though. Since they had the Ranger suits, which provided more protection, and offered a lot more movement, Mentor Ji reasoned the wearing of armour would teach them nothing useful. As a result, whenever one was hit with a Shinai, more than just bruising, it was more of whipping pain. The individual strips of bamboo would shift and whip into the flesh, and occasionally they would part, leading to pinching. The bamboo had even been known to split at times, leading to the occasional laceration, and even splinters being driven into the victim. As bizarre as it sounded, with preference, he would rather be hit with a Bokken.

Not in this case though. When Mia had slipped through his guard, he hadn't even managed to deflect its momentum in the slightest. He had originally been delighted at the idea of sparring with Mia, but his mind was not exactly on the task at hand. When he saw her standing before him, all he could think about was how beautiful she was. He was amazed by how gracefully she moved, and was so mesmerised by her that he was distracted. The first time it happened, he had led with his guard too high and she had caught him across the ribs.

They had finally given up after he had taken almost half a dozen telling shots, and he made the decision to end the bout for his own safety. He was sitting on a stool, his jacket resting on the counter to let Mia see his ribs and his back. He was holding a pack of frozen peas on his right knee, which had taken a good shot right on the kneecap and swollen right up to the size of a softball, sparking fears from Mentor Ji that she might have split the patella. He also had a badly swollen black eye, and had been bleeding badly from his nose from the final shot, the one that made it clear he should just give up. Mentor Ji was inspecting the nose closely, pressing it lightly with his fingers.

"Well, it's broken." He sighed.

"Great." Kevin muttered, shifting a little in the stool as Mia came back in. Mentor Ji gave him a piece of wood.

"Bite down on this." He instructed him. Kevin dutifully did as he was told, knowing exactly what was coming next. As soon as he had done so, Mentor Ji grabbed his nose in his fingers and shoved it, resetting it with a horrendous crunch. Kevin grunted in pain, but casting a glance to where Mia was standing, he stopped short of screaming. Given the look on her face, he could see that she was slightly sickened by the sound of his nose being re-set. She looked a little apologetic about it all, knowing that she was responsible for his pain.

"Here's the first aid kit." She told Mentor Ji as she set it down. "Can I...?"

"I'll leave you in Mia's capable hands." Mentor Ji told him. He turned to her as he straightened up. "The swelling in his knee should have gone down enough to check it out shortly."

As he left, Mia came in front of Kevin looking at him apologetically as she opened the first aid kit, looking out some dressings. She found one to support his nose.

"I'm really sorry about this." She told him sadly, hardly able to look him in the eye. "I didn't mean..."

"It's not like we're Morris Dancing out there." Kevin interrupted her, reaching out and touching her shoulder softly. As much pain as he was in, he couldn't bear to see her beating herself up for hurting him like that, especially since he knew for a fact it was mostly his fault for not paying attention to the bout. It wasn't her fault that he was hopelessly crushing on her. She didn't even know that whenever she walked into the room, he stopped breathing for a moment. It wasn't like she invited him to dream about her every night, to imagine what it would be like to hold her in his arms, to be with her. She smiled a little uneasily. "It's not my fault you're getting better."

She started to tape up his nose, pressing it gently into place. Kevin didn't flinch despite how much it hurt. He knew she was only trying to help, and he could tell that she felt terrible about the fact she had hurt him. He didn't want her to feel bad around him. It had only been a short time since she had to accept that her crush on Jayden had been completely one-way. Following that, she had given up the Beetle Disk to Mike, despite Mentor Ji awarding it to her. It pained him to see her upset, and didn't want to take another hit, especially at his hands given how badly she had taken it to heart when he was the one chosen to shatter her illusions about her cooking. She finished with his nose and smiled a little at him.

"Mentor Ji did a good job." She told him. "Once the swelling goes down, I'm sure no one will be able to tell it was ever broken."

"Well that's one thing at least." He laughed weakly as he stroked her shoulder gently. "It's not like I had much in the looks department to begin with."

"You shouldn't really put yourself down like that." She told him as she inspected the large bruise across his ribs, ensuring that nothing was out of place. As far as she could tell none of the ribs were cracked or broken, and everything was where it was meant to be, so he was in no danger from that injury, though it looked like it had to hurt like hell.

"It's not exactly like the girls are taking a number and getting in line." He commented. He almost kicked himself for saying that. He didn't care that girls weren't chasing him, he never had. He was only interested in one. Mia just flashed him a little smile.

"Well it's not like I'm inundated with offers either." She replied as she placed a hand on his, gently removing the pack of peas from his knee, before placing the hand on his knee. Kevin couldn't help smiling as he felt her hand on his. He felt the same tingle he always did when they touched. She checked out his knee, moving his leg gently as she held a hand on his knee to make sure the movement was natural.

"Well, I can't feel anything unnatural." She told him, breathing a sigh of relief as much for her own peace of mind as the fact that Kevin wasn't going to be laid up. "It doesn't feel like anything's broken."

"Well that's good." He answered, placing the peas back on his knee. "I would have hated to be out of action for any length of time."

Mentor Ji came back into the room, carrying some painkillers. As a matter of course, he kept the medicine cabinet in his room, and it was always locked. It wasn't that he didn't trust his Rangers, he just knew how easily accidents could occur when it came to medication, and wanted to keep an eye on exactly what they were taking and how regularly. He placed a couple of tablets into a glass of water, which started to fizz and dissolve.

"It doesn't look like anything's broken." Mia told him. "I think if he keeps the peas on his knee for a while longer to keep the swelling down, he should be fine by morning training tomorrow."

"It is fortunate. We could do without being a Ranger down." He replied. "Mia, would you begin working on dinner?"

Kevin looked to her and she just smiled.

"It's only stir-fried vegetables in noodles." She told him. "Even I can't screw that up."

As she left, Mentor Ji noticed Kevin watching her go. He handed him the glass, at which Kevin drank the concoction.

"Why do the young ones take so long to learn their lesson?" He asked in a deep sigh, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I'm sorry?" Kevin asked him.

"Mia is good, but she is not good enough to inflict wounds like this on you." Mentor Ji put down flatly. "Not unless you allowed her to do so."

"Allowed her?" Kevin asked him. "Do you really think I wanted to get my nose smashed in?"

"Perhaps you did not intend to let her hurt you, but I watched you sparring." Mentor Ji told him. "Your mind was not on the task at hand."

"You think I was distr...aargghh!"

Kevin yelled as Mentor Ji clamped a hand on his knee, causing him pain to make a point. Neither of them noticed that Mia was coming back. She had come back for the peas for the dinner. However, hearing the scream, she paused. Opening the door slightly, she could see that someone was going down between Mentor Ji and Kevin. She didn't know why she stayed hidden; she wasn't in the habit of eavesdropping on other people's conversations.

"You all forget that I was not always old. I am well aware what it is like to be young." Mentor Ji told him. "Nor am I removed from human desires. I know what it is to look on another in that way."

He released Kevin's knee, at which he stroked it, trying to regain some composure.

"Alright, first of all, that hurt!" Kevin complained. "Secondly, no offence, but that mental image is one I really didn't need."

"Your injuries are your own fault Kevin." Mentor Ji told him. "Perhaps if you had been paying more attention to your training than Mia, then you would not have ended up here."

Mia wondered exactly what he meant by that. If he was paying attention to her, why would that affect their training?

"That's not..."

"It is one thing to be defeated by a superior opponent." Mentor Ji told him. "It is quite another to be defeated because you are too busy ogling..."

"I wasn't..."

"I saw the way you looked at her as she left the kitchen." Mentor Ji told him. "I have seen how you have been looking at her for some time. Don't try to deny it."

Mia held her breath as she heard this. Were they really talking about what she thought they were? Kevin just sighed and shook his head.

"I can't." He replied. "Alright, I like her ok? I have almost since I met her."

Mia almost collapsed as she heard Kevin's confession to Mentor Ji. She had no idea that he felt that way about her. He was one of her best friends. She had always been able to talk to him about anything. He had been the one that spoke to her when it became clear that her skills in the kitchen, or more accurately her lack of skills in the kitchen had finally dawned on her. He had comforted her when she felt like an idiot for not getting the message that Jayden was simply not interested in her as anything other than a friend.

Thinking about it now, several things started to fall into place. He had always spent the most time with her out of the other Rangers. He was the one who had done the most to make her feel good about herself. He was the first to choke down the food that she now knew to be almost toxic. He was the one who had helped her get over her disappointment when she found out that the others had lied to her, and even made a joke of her behind her back over it. He was the one that made her feel better when she realised she had been barking up the wrong tree with Jayden.

Turning her attention back to the kitchen, she saw Mentor Ji placing a hand on Kevin's shoulder.

"I know what it is to have such feelings, but to allow them to consume you like this only leads to disaster." Mentor Ji told him. "You were distracted because of her and you paid the price. It is just good fortune that you were not hurt more seriously."

"So what are you telling me to do?" Kevin asked him. "Just forget how I feel?"

"I know asking you to do that would be as pointless as asking you to stop your heart from beating." Mentor Ji told him. "However, Mike and Emily seem to have found a balance."

"Balance?" He asked him.

"You know what you need to do." Mentor Ji told him, before nodding in the direction of the kitchen. "I believe Mia will need those peas."

As Kevin got up from his stool, Mia scrambled and left the door, heading back to the kitchen. She knew she wasn't meant to have heard that conversation, and Kevin was coming as she spoke. Getting back to the kitchen, she found the rice had already boiled, and took it off the heat. The vegetables were already chopped and prepared; all that was left was the peas. As she turned on the heat under the wok, Kevin arrived with the peas.

"I guess I couldn't have timed that any better if I'd tried." He commented, handing her the peas.

"Thanks." She replied, trying not to look him in the eyes in case she gave herself away.

"Would you like a hand?" He asked her.

"I think I'll be fine." She told him, holding up a recipe book. She wasn't yet brave enough to attempt to cook without a book yet. "Would you mind setting the table please?"

"I think I can manage that." He told her, going over to the cupboards. Mia didn't know how to react to what she had heard. Kevin was one of her best friends. She didn't know what to think about what she had heard. He wanted more from her. He liked her as more than a friend. How was she meant to handle that?

As she looked over, she thought about Kevin. He was a pretty good guy. He was always making her laugh or smile. He did everything to protect her, and he would never hurt her intentionally. She thought back to the time when he was under the control of a Nighlock, and realised something that she hadn't before. When he was made to attack them, it was when he saw her that he stopped. As hard as it was for him to defy control, it was when she was the one he was driven to attack that he found the strength to stop.

As he stretched up to the shelf for some plates, she noticed that he actually had a pretty good body. Of course she had kind of noticed before, she wasn't blind, but she had been so wrapped up in everything, she had never thought about him that way. As he turned to go to the living room, she just coughed.

"Yes Mia?" He asked. She just waved a finger up and down, gesturing to him.

"Um...you might want to..."

"Oh." He uttered, suddenly realising that he was still in his boxer shorts. He had taken off his training uniform when they were checking him over in the living room. He put down the plates and gave her a bright smile, flicking a thumb over his shoulder. "I'll just..."

"That would be an idea." Mia interrupted him as he went to collect his clothes. Watching him leave, she couldn't help laughing a little, but there was one more thing that occurred to her. She always smiled when she was around Kevin. They really enjoyed each other's company, and he always had time for her, no matter how hectic things got. Thinking about his smile, she realised that any time she saw it; she just knew that things would be alright.

As he came back, picking up the plates, he gave her a little look.

"Um...Mia, after dinner, would you like to go for a little walk?" He asked her. "I really should stretch out my knee, and it's a nice night..."

"That sounds like it would be nice." She interrupted him. "I'll see you then."

As he left to set the table, Mia turned her attention back to the wok as she added the vegetables to the oil and spice mix, humming contentedly. She couldn't wait until after dinner. Perhaps she had been looking at the wrong Ranger all along.


End file.
